Indian Car Warranties : The best, the average and the worst!

This is a discussion on Indian Car Warranties : The best, the average and the worst! within The Indian Car Scene, part of the BHP India category; Honda's Extended Warranty is not identical to the standard warranty like their website claims. The extended warranty booklet specifically mentions ...

Honda's Extended Warranty is not identical to the standard warranty like their website claims. The extended warranty booklet specifically mentions that the music system is not covered along with rubber parts. Usually, all rubber parts are wear and tear and they are never covered under warranty anyways. However, the Civic's dog mount is a known problem part that fails often in some cars. It is replaced under warranty with no fuss. But under extended warranty, it might become a contentious issue. It is part rubber, part metal and filled with hydraulic fluid and expensive (around INR 7K inc. taxes). The type of part it is is open to liberal interpretation.

Fantastic thread GTO, this thread should be a must for buyers. I have a Hyundai , in the first year had a problem of fuel pump, the dealer replaced under warranty, no questions asked. After that it's been a smooth ride. Substatiates the finding shared here of Hyundai backing it's product. I agree on that.

Do all the manufacturers treat extended warranty as new warranty ? If not then we do need to know the SCBs and ICICIs of car industry.

I beg to differ. Volkswagen has the EXACT same warranty policy for it's cars that are sold in India, save for the Polo.

The Polo ought to have a similar policy, albeit of a shorter period. We haven't received the policy details for it yet.

I did mention in the last line "Across its entire lineup". If the same is not available for the Polo (which I think comes with 6 years warranty on body), then you cannot claim it for the entire VW range.

However, it is good to know that VW is also offering such a warranty.
I read through other threads and looks like you are a VW employee?

I did mention in the last line "Across its entire lineup". If the same is not available for the Polo (which I think comes with 6 years warranty on body), then you cannot claim it for the entire VW range.

However, it is good to know that VW is also offering such a warranty.
I read through other threads and looks like you are a VW employee?

Different manufacturers have concocted different sets of conditions & they don't treat the extended warranty equally.
Hell, they don't even treat the standard warranty with consistency throughout. I specifically know that the electricals of my new Hyundai are covered for 1 year while the "total" standard warranty is for 2 years. Clutch & Brakes are obviously left out altogether. The stereo also IIRC is only for 6months/1year. There were another few important omissions i seem to have forgotten (I'm getting this vague feeling that something is covered for only 3 months ). The Battery is under full replacement for 1 year, no questions asked & 2 years after that is the "repair" warranty.

When i asked the dealership about the extended 3rd year warranty for which i paid Rs.5201, they said only the important equipment is covered - engine, transmission, ac, suspension etc

Quote:

Originally Posted by arin_12

Do any one facs this issue ? One of my friends car is having the prob and Service center has gave this excuse.

If you change the wheel from RIM to ALLOY without any upsize/downsize your Suspension and all wheel related parts goes out of warranty ?

The guys at Jayabharat Hyundai said i could change to other alloys but proper physical damage to the suspension may be attributed to the changed "weak" alloys & the claim may not go through. Upsizing of tyres is strictly prohibited! the only reason i didn't change to 15's & get better alloys.

Btw, The 2nd post in the thread states that Hyundai is offering 5 years extended warranty , Was i not offered that for my new i20 or did i miss something?

Ok two things here,
Firstly I got the Ritz in November 2009. I got the extended warranty for a total of 2395+2600 for third and fourth year respectively.

Secondly I purchased a Ritz for my very close pal only a week ago....17th March 2010 to be precise for a total amount of 396500.00 from New Delhi's No 1 Maruti dealer. I can confirm it to you that prices for extended warranties have not changed even by a rupee between the above mentioned two purchases. The price list I have write now is effective dated 27.02.2010. I'll try to scan the same tomorrow and upload it for all of you.

Somehow I am having a doubt as to maybe there could be a difference between the prices for Mumbai and Delhi. But still this is a very big difference.

Ritz - For Third and Fourth Year
Mumbai(As mentioned by you) - 9590.00
Delhi - 4995.00

Dippy you need to re-check about the prices mentioned by you from the dealer. The prices I have mentioned above are confirmed active present prices.
Will try and upload the price list scanned image tomorrow for all models of Maruti.

As told earlier that I would upload the latest prices for all Maruti Car models. Please see the same as follows. This list also contains prices for extended warranties for 3rd and the 4th year.
The 3rd year optional warranty is included as part of the ex-showroom cost. It can be seen from this price list that some dealers apply this strategy to sell the 3rd year warranty as part of the ex-showroom cost. Recently I also noticed all Hyundai dealers in Delhi doing the same.

My Experience with Hyundai's warranty policy is pretty sore. I own a Getz Crdi and guess what there is no extended warranty on the machine. It comes with a standard 2 year / 40000kms warranty. When asked for a reason why there aint a extended warranty they have no reply (even the customer service guys from Hyundai team).

I dont see any reason why this is done because all the other Getz models come with an option to purchase 2 yrs extended warranty and also the verna ( since the Crdi engine for Getz is sourced from the Verna). The service from the Hyundai dealer @ Navi Mumbai (Sharayu) is spot on , no complains whatsoever but the extended warranty treatment for this beast was uncalled for and will prevent me from buying any other Hyundai vehicle.

Also GTO, could help all of us here in understanding the 3 aspect of warranties after the standard, extended and the emission warranty.

Emissions warranty is the company saying that their car will pass emissions tests it is designed for for a specific number of years. This includes quite a bit of the drive train, catcon etc. I remember seeing some parts of the Civic being warranted under emissions warranty for something ridiculous like 7 years or something. I'll go scan the relevant part when I get back home.

How do you rate Ford, GM on this? I am asking because I am going to get a Figo diesel in couple of days.

It will be a wise decision to get your Figo covered under the extended warranty umbrella.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sahil

My vote for best standard and extended warranty goes to BMW.

Standard there are better, extended I agree. Their 5 year complete package is unmatched till date by Mercedes or Audi. Heck, except for Hyundai & BMW, no one offers cover for 5 years in India.

Quote:

Overall attitude of both dealers is similar but Navnit Motors defiantly does have my vote hands down ! Most of their staff is very helpful and co-operative, besides they do have far more experience on handling these cars as they have been doing it for far longer.

Its great to hear of your positive experience. Mercedes & BMW, both, offer excellent customer service. It's a shame Audi doesn't. Not only do they goof up pre-delivery, but even after.

Quote:

Originally Posted by designersf

My Swift has barely done 9000kms in 3 years (used only in weekends and holiday trips) and I was happy to take the extended warranty as I had to replace the AC blower (the entire HVAC module was changed) within 3 years. The failure of a part does not depend on the running alone but on many more factors

I have a Hyundai , in the first year had a problem of fuel pump, the dealer replaced under warranty, no questions asked. After that it's been a smooth ride. Substatiates the finding shared here of Hyundai backing it's product. I agree on that.

There you go! Precisely why I'm big on extended warranties. Think about it : Indians, on an average, change cars at about the 5th year mark. With warranties now extending to the 5th year, this effectively means a headache-free ownership period from start till end.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Live To Jive

Which is why I was saying it is no use taking extended warranty for Honda and Toyota. I have also never heard of a warranty claim for these brands.

Well, Toyota doesn't offer extended warranties anyways. However, things can and do go wrong even with the best. I still recommend extended warranties to new Honda owners.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Musicmaker23

Btw, The 2nd post in the thread states that Hyundai is offering 5 years extended warranty , Was i not offered that for my new i20 or did i miss something?

Take a look at Flyingspur's post with full details on the i20's 5 year coverage at this link.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Speed-Freak

I own a Getz Crdi and guess what there is no extended warranty on the machine.

Hyundai did eventually offer an extended warranty on the Getz CRDi (details in posts on the 1st & 2nd pages).

Hey GTO bro, i guess you are pointing to the posts mentioning the i20 crdi, am aware that they have offered the extended warranty , however the Getz Crdi still has no extended warranty. Have enquired at almost all dealers in Mumbai / N Mumbai. If you are aware of some details otherwise you may please help me as my car goes out of warranty in a couple of months.

In my last 16 years of driving experience, I can confidently tell that warranties by and large depend more on one's relationship with the dealer. Yes, there are warranty clauses, ifs and buts, dos and donts, but at the end of the day if the dealer feels, he can still consider stuffs under warranty, not-to-mention subject to validity of the warranty period.

I can cite some personal expereince, 2 years back there was a bush failure inside the engine of my Santro. Hyundai replaced it without a single word under warranty. However, in another instance, the clutch plate, which almost worn out, was not considered under warranty from the same dealer even though it was under warranty period, reason being "its a wear and tear part". Irony is that i got it replaced from another dealer under warranty because of my personal relationship.

Coming to Maruti, I got my "cracked" windshield replaced under warranty, after a driving of 3 months. Was it really a crack ? I dont know. Again because of rapport. Maruti is a bit liberal when it comes to warranty, partly because of their volume and partly because the components are cheaper.

I would always advise to definitely go for an extended warranty, as these are machine parts. No matter how precision or how best engineered they are, you may still come across a failure, even the very day of buying your brand new car. And you will realize only that time the value of an EW. Did I say INSURANCE ?

And Yes, please don't forget to follow the rules:
1. Maintain your car as stock as possible.
2. Do take a concurrence from dealer before any modification, if at all, whether the post-mod will be covered under warranty.
3. Never miss the service milestones, under an A$$.
4. Majority of plastic components do not come under warranty, so try to maintain them on your own.